12 months of charity

Gifts that grow

For Christmas 2015 I donated money to have trees planted in Africa, one for each of my family members and one for my friends and their children. It was received very well amongst my family & friends. It felt great – spending money for a good reason, knowing it will bring a positive outcome.

Monthly budget

It was not the first time I donated something. In fact I’m donating money on a regular basis to protect animals. This I’m very passionate about. The conclusion is: I want to do it again! But what charity should you choose?
In addition to donations, I took part in a few charitable events over the last years: running, climbing, swimming – all for good causes. By the way, what is a good charity anyway? You have to answer this question for yourself. For me it is anything starting from humanitarian causes to protecting animals. How we can protect the environment is one of my interests and that is why I want to be focusing on projects that also helps the environment.
Donating a part of my income would be a good starting point. Something I can afford will be my budget for every month. I also wanted to find out what can be achieved with my contribution, what impact it might have depending on where the money is invested in.

Are you a good botanist or scientist?

Cancer Research

Most things I care about and want to support are challenging to do in the sense that planting trees in Africa is barely feasible for a working professional like me. Even if I take time off, fly there and plant a tree myself, chances are that the inexperienced person I am won’t be any good at it. Just think about the emissions I would produce by travelling there in the first place. How about building a well in Africa or researching cancer – I don’t want to think about the trouble this could cause. Let’s leave that to the professionals, shall we?

Finding the right one

Soon I found out it’s not easy to find a charity worth supporting. Don’t get me wrong – there are plenty of great organisations out there doing an outstanding job! Just think of the kind of cause you are interested in. You will find thousands of results by searching online for a fundraising project of your interest.
The real challenge is finding the “right” one, something that resonates with you. How would we know what project makes most sense, what organisation can actually deliver on their promises? Additional research is needed. This is exactly what I will be doing the following this year: